WISE Girls

Are you a Muslim girl curious about your rights? Do you feel like you don’t know where to turn? Are you trying to understand issues and topics such as child and forced marriages, family violence, Muslim alienation from “American Life,” and covering?

Many young Muslim women face identity issues and harassment everyday. But, they are not alone. Many wish to have relationship education. Sex education is not taught in Muslim communities or in Islamic schools and if they attend public school then all they learn about sex not relationships. Likewise, many young girls often question what they wear, or how they wish to cover. A woman will often go through different phases of dress throughout her lifetime as a reflection of her own spiritual journey. Likewise, many young muslim girls are barred from participating in “American life.” In order to prevent their children, especially their daughters, from becoming too Westernized, Muslim parents prevent them from engaging in common American teen/young adult milestones/cultural events, for example prom. However, it is also common that Muslim women are discouraged or barred completely from engaging in the public sphere. This results in the erasure of Muslim women from leadership and professional fields, including and especially fields of knowledge. Furthermore, sexual abuse, forced marriages, and violence are also obstacles that some Muslim girls face. Sexual abuse and exploitation is rampant in the world and the Muslim community is no exception. It happens in our families, in our mosques, and involves community members. Part of the clash of culture and Islam is the practice of child and forced marriage—both of which stem from a set of beliefs and assumptions about women and girls, their relationship to their parents, and their place in society. Likewise, violence is far too common among immigrant households and the fact that they are immigrants makes them less likely to seek and receive help. Violence is normalized to the extent where it is ignored or even bragged about.

WISE is here to help support you. You are not alone.

No one should feel alone in their journey. If you fill in the Contact form below, we will pair you up with a mentor who can support you and help you with some of the questions you may have. This will all be kept confidential! We just want to make sure that you know your rights and can be part of an empowering community.